Die Schwanenprinzessin

This movie came out when I was two, and no matter how much time passes nor how many times I rewatch it throughout the years, I still love The Swan Princess. Can it be a bit corny? Yes. Is Odette a bit dull for a heroine? Yes. Could the plot have been solved within 10 minutes if Derek (or Odette) was a bit smarter or William a bit less vague in his final moments? Yes. But then is the music fun to listen to, the characters enjoyable and the experience memorable? Yes!

The animation is not as great as Disney, but it isn't hard to overlook because the film is good overall. Speaking from a feminist side, I do wish Odette had a rounder personality and more drive to save herself instead of waiting for Derek to find her. While she did plot to get the map and lead Derek to her, she did it after Puffin and her friends worked her up to it. Before Puffin arrived, she was seemingly content to spend the evenings moping to Jean-Bob and Speed about her curse and how she needed Derek to save her from it and then spent her days pouting on the lake. You've got wings, baby -- use them!

Derek isn't the smartest person in the movie, but you gotta love him for his drive and his self-awareness, knowing he was an idiot who said the wrong thing. It was also refreshing to see the hero actually be physically capable of the rescue. The plot nicely demonstrates his talent as an archer so we are able to believe the incredible save at the end.

The movie also has memorable lines that I've jokingly quoted throughout my life. It's an all-around fun movie. Don't take too much stock in the people, but remember the lesson -- Love is more important than beauty.

Speaking of love, the other piece this movie has going for it is the relationship development that trumps its Disney competitors. This isn't love at first sight! This is a slow growing love after years of being forced together that first bred distain before love ever thought to bloom. It was wonderful to watch two people actually know each other from child to young adult instead of two young adults meeting for the very first time and BOOM, it's love! One of the best parts of this movie.

TL;DR: This movie is one of the classic greats. It's worth a spot in anyone's personal collection.

The Swan Princess sure is a childhood favourite of mine, even in my mid 20's. I still hum the songs and miss the times when hand-drawn animation was the thing. No movie has ever captured me the same way as this one. I can't pretend it's a masterpiece, because its story structure needed tightening up a bit to make it more flowing, but I just can't help loving its simple premise.

Our main characters, Derek and Odette, are set to spent every summer together from their childhood up to their young adulthood and that is not easy, because they despise each other! How they tease each other during a montage accompagnied by the wonderful song "This is my Idea" is really entertaining, and honestly not that far from reality, because this is how many kids act in their childhood. It was spot on and arguably the strongest part of the movie.

But to be honest, the fact that Derek is so bad at expressing his feelings to Odette is kind of a letdown after all those years' setting up of their romance. Now he must prove his love for Odette while the villainous Rothbart has abducted her and tries to force her to marry him instead so he can get to the throne initially not using destructive methods. Quite original use of the evil power hungry sorcerer villain, actually. Despicably trying legal methods to get to his goal.

Therefore he turns her into a swan and asks her every night to marry him if she wants to become fully human again, but she only wants her true love, Derek. Jack Palance's performance as Rothbart is creepy. He talks to Odette the same way a narcissist would talk and he really enjoys seeing her cry. But Odette stands up to him and with her wonderful animal friends try to escape his grip when he is not around.

And with that conflict set up we get all sorts of things you'd expect from this kind of fairy tale.

Like briefly stated in the beginning of my review, I think I like it so much, because it is so down to the basics of what I know as a fairy tale with princes and princesses, magic and of course a happy ending where good triumphs over evil. And despite the rather rushed romance, the tale of ever lasting love just speaks to my sentimental side. It's sweet, and I just can't help feeling it every time. The music is well composed and the songs are effective in conveying whatever emotion they resemble and move the story forward. And the end is perfect, gets me every time!

And no matter which side you're on, it must be addressed that The Swan Princess, despite its flaws, has earned its place in animation history as the last theatrically released Western animated movie to not use any aid of computers. After the invention of the CAPS system to digitally colour the drawings and the release of Disney's The Rescuers Down Under it has been standard procedure using that method sadly making ink and paint hopelessly ineffecient and a thing of the past seen from a business standpoint.

So to sum up, The Swan Princess is an enjoyable casual fairy tale for kids with animation as traditional as its premise reminding us of the good old times of hand-drawn Disney spiced up with good songs, entertaining characters and a creepy villain. In my opinion it should have been a stand-alone movie, because Richard Rich and co. has ruined it with unwanted forced garbage CGI sequels with stupid plots, impossible settings, awful songs and obnoxious characters. Stick with this one and preserve the real magic.

Compared to previous attempts by competing studios to break Disney's stranglehold on the animated film market, The Swan Princess really is a good movie. The animation does not quite have Disney's finesse and got a little rough in places, but was still watchable and generally pleasing to the eye, unlike, say, Thumbelina. The songs, though not particularly memorable and vaguely cheesy in the manner of much older animated flicks, did not bring the movie to a grinding halt and actually managed to, in general, help it along. It has a plot.

That's not to say that The Swan Princess doesn't have its problems, mostly in its characters. The titular lead, Princess Odette, is a flat failure as a heroine--she never *does* anything except lead her one true love, Prince Derrick, to her--and even then, she only does that because her animal friends, Puffin, Speed the turtle, and Jean-Bob the frog, cook up the plan for her.

Derrick is much more likeable, and though throughout most of the movie he is a flaming idiot, he is a likeable and sympathetic flaming idiot--and he does learn. His mistakes are, as a rule, human and understandable, and in the end it is he who saves the day and finally learns the movie's apparent lesson--that beauty is not all there is in matters of love or anything else.

The development of their relationship is refreshing--rather than falling in love at first sight, they start out hating each other with a passion, and it takes them years--spanned capably over the course of one amusing if sugary song--to realize that they do love each other. And then Derrick blows it(!), and spends the rest of the movie scrambling to recover from his mistake.

The end battle was satisfying, though in general I prefer for the heroine to help save their hides in some manner. The movie-makers were not afraid to beat the living daylights out of their hero, and though the save he pulls in the end is nothing short of miraculous, it was at least shown much earlier to be within his princely capabilities.

Despite its flaws, I found The Swan Princess to be a satisfying and re-watchable movie--though I did catch myself agreeing with Derrick's comment (stated early in the movie) that he could do much better.

I have the VHS for this which is 16 years old and I always watch it whenever there is nothing on TV.

The film is about a beautiful princess named Odette who falls in love with a handsome prince named Derek whom she met as a kid and the two of them don't get along at first but as they are brought together every summer they fall in love with each other.

Of course when Odette gets older an evil warlock wants her from himself and when she refuses to marry him as he is taking over her kingdom every time the moon goes she is magically transformed into a swan and when the moon comes back the next day she is turned back into a human again.

Although its kinda silly in a way and a bit old-fashioned but I like this film for a very long time as it was fun,cute,romantic and sweet. The songs were so sweet like For longer than forever was such a romantic ballad and that other song No more Mr nice guy which had me smiling for days. The characters were colorful,the plot was nice and cheerful,the ending was nice.

If you like transformation movies like Beauty & the Beast,Brother Bear,The Little Mermaid then check it out.

8/10

*sigh* I was like around 2 years old when it came out and apparently it was a favorite of mine along with the Disney classics and such. And even though I'm 13 now.. i still love it. A total classic love story where the two "lovers" are separated and the Prince has to find the Princess. I love the songs 'This Is My Idea' and 'Far Longer Than Forever'. This Is My Idea is probably my favorite because it shows Odette and Derek grow up together and it's quite funny when they come to the "This is not my idea.. This isn't my idea.. of fun" since it usually concludes humorous scenes. Any young child would love it.. especially girls. The animal-trio are hilarious especially Jean-Bob and Speed.